i think i wanna .. touch it

Jigsaw was warming up to Habari, and although every member of his family seemed to attempt to stuff him full of food at every opportune moment, the pup remained extremely skinny in size. It didn't bother him to be the littlest (especially since height-wise he was equal to his brother Kelly) but regardless it seemed to bother the adults in his life, and so it was for their benefit that he decided to take up hunting. As far as Jigsaw was concerned it was only further proof of his dedication to Habari, and even more reason to give him the position he coveted even if said position was unrelated to the murdering of small animals.

He slunk out from his den in early morning, shaking out his shoulders and taking a deep breath of the clean and crisp morning air. It had rained the night previous, summer was gone and the days were growing colder. He wasn't much a fan of the cold, though he did love the feeling of the morning dew upon his paws. The moisture sinking in between his toes felt funny, and he squished around in the wet grass for longer perhaps than he should have seeing as he was on a very-important-mission. Today he was going to catch himself something to eat, and hopefully pad his thin belly a little bit to appease the adults whom he made his home with. Looks apparently mattered more then Jigsaw knew, and he decided adults must grow silly in their age. Another reason why he should be the highest ranking healer - all the enthusiasm, none of the silly wisdom of age.

With a skip in his step he trotted forward, the wind brushing against his ears and delivering a multitude of scents directly into his flaring nostrils. As he walked he kicked puddles of moisture off the nearby plants and smiled against the wetness on his paws. The world was absolutely wonderful, and he wanted to touch it all.

A new scent hit him, familiar almost like the prairie dogs but yet different at the same time. He came to a slow stop, tilting his nose to the sky and sniffing softly to try and catch the direction of the creature. He saw it before he smelled it again - the fluffiest, softest looking rabbit he'd ever seen in his life. Jigsaw's tiny heart pounded hard and he crouched low into the wet grass quickly, poking his muzzle out to watch as the bunny hopped cautiously along. It's ears, he decided. That would be what he'd touch first. And then Jigsaw went into a dead sprint.

The rabbit of course was a much faster prey then the pup anticipated, and as his paws came down where the rabbit used to be he let out a grumbled 'urf!' of annoyance. Already the twitching tail was out of sight, and he stamped his paw down upon the grass in frustration. When the ground vibrated in reply, his annoyance faded away and in it's place the pup's confusion broke ahead. Had the rabbit thumped back at him? It made little sense, but that was what he was feeling in his paws. Jigsaw glanced down between his forelegs and then touched his nose to the dirt, sniffing softly. Weird.

The thumping was growing fainter, and if he focused hard he could hear it now. Slower this time, Jigsaw moved back into a hunter's crouch and slunk towards the sound. As he broke through the long blades of grass he could see the tips of the rabbit's ears, and then it's head all the way down to it's twitching tail. He channeled the patience of his father, taking deep breaths to steady himself as he cautiously stalked forward towards the unaware prey. It was small, but it's fluff had not been exaggerated. Jigsaw had to touch it - he just had to. If he didn't touch it, he'd die. The thought process didn't help him to stay calm and collected, but he did manage to creep close enough to it that he thought maybe this time he'd have a shot.

He waited until the rabbit's head ducked down to graze, and then shot from the grasses as fast as his thin legs could allow and crashed his entire body upon the bunny. It squeaked in fear and pain, and instinctively Jigsaw closed his teeth around it's throat and squeezed. The body grew lifeless and for a moment he felt guilt, though very quickly that guilt fell away to pride. Then excitement. He reached his paw out and stroked the fluffy ears, a wide grin spreading across his face as he rubbed his cheek across the soft pelt. It felt just like his father's travois, only softer. Waste not want not, Jigsaw intended to keep the pelt. He'd bring it back to his brother and ask him to make something of it, so he could stroke the soft fur whenever he wished.

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